TEENage Hitlist
What makes a hit? Is it the lyrics, the artiste, the hype at the time? Is it something special about the voice or rhythm?
The TEENage Hitlist pinpoints the hits and the misses as soon as we hear both local and international releases.
Local Hit Of The Week For All My Friends by T Nez & Laden
Amidst the monotonous artiste names on radio playlists and television stations video countdowns, there are still barrages of new acts hoping to change this trend.
T Nez is the first artiste to be signed to the popular Chimney Records imprint, and is resilient in his quest to break into the heavily guarded dancehall marketplace.
With several solo promo singles T Nez has gained airplay and moderate YouTube buzz, but it’s his single For All My Friends that features Big Ship artiste Laden, that may have what it takes for him to crossover as a mainstream artiste in the dancehall industry.
For All My Friends is about friends who have passed on and their memories are cherished, which is a very relatable topic within the Jamaican context.
T Nez isn’t a hardcore dancehall artiste, he is more of a singjay that gives him an important advantage melody- wise and potentiality for catchiness over most of his dancehall counterparts. The same notion goes for Laden.
Their melodiousness which was used well in this song, along a with stirring production from Chimney Records, could be the formula that TEENage Hitlist believes will propel For All My Friends song to popularity.
International Hit Of The Week Rockstar 101 by Rihanna
After a controversy plagued early 2009, Rihanna has made a triumphant return to the music scene with her latest release Rated R. Rated R has set two top ten Billboard Top 100 charted singles with Russian Roulette and Hard, while Rude Boy held the pole position for two weeks. The next single announced for which the video has already been shot is Rockstar 101.
Rockstar 101 is produced by Christopher Tricky Stewart and written by Terius ‘The-Dream’ Nash, the same duo that provided her with the pop smashes Umbrella and Hard. Legendary Guns N Roses guitarist Slash played the guitar on this single to give it an authentic rockstar vibe.
As the title would suggest, Rockstar 101 is about all the rockstar cliches we have grown to know but not heard from frequently by a female artiste. This gives the song a gutsy braggadocious edge to it laced with Rihanna’s already confident persona.
TEENage Hitlist believes that Rockstar 101 will be another hit in a row for Bajan pop princess Rihanna.